Progressive E-Board Coalition - DNC Candidate Questionnaire
Mal Burnstein/Progressive Caucus Northern California Co-Chair
(answers received on 5/22/08 5:27 PM)
If you are an incumbent DNC member, what have you done as a DNC member to
promote the progressive agenda on the following issues:
a) Ending the US occupation of Iraq
b) Eliminating Poverty
C) Universal Single-Payer Healthcare
D) Election Integrity (protecting each vote to ensure it is counted as cast)
E) Preventing a US attack on Iran
F) Preserving a free and open Internet
G) Impeaching or indicting Bush and Cheney
H) Redirecting California's resources to support education, not incarceration
I) Protecting LGBT Rights and Promoting Marriage Equality
If you are not an incumbent, what have you done to address the issues enumerated above?
I have been active through the progressive caucus and otherwise on most of these issues for many years. We (the progressive caucus) did a paper and a forum on Iraq (and Iran), some of our paper is now in the party platform at our insistence; eliminating poverty is a plank in the progressive caucus platform; we did a paper and forum on single payer, and I fought to get it in the party platform; I have been a grassroots supporter of eliminating the DRE machines with no paper trail, and a long time supporter of public financing of elections, both of which are a progressive caucus priority, and I fought to get public financing of elections into the party platform, I have worked with Loni Hancock on public financing since long before she went to the Assembly, have been a strong supporter of AB 583, and took the lead in getting it into the CDP platform; I have advocated eliminating the death penalty for years – both politically and professionally -- and was on an ACLU project to repeal it in the 70’s; I haven’t done much on alternate energy, except in my own life.
; the progressive caucus has supported net neutrality and got it in the party platform; the caucus had a forum on impeachment; I have continuously opposed our bloated prison industry at the expense of our schools and colleges, and the incarceration of so many of our young people; and I have strongly, both inside and outside the party professionally, personally and politically, supported LGBT rights and marriage equality.
If you had been in Congress, how would you have voted for the most recent 178-billion dollar war package?
Along side Barbara Lee, against the war and all war funding.
How have you used your activism or Party involvement to challenge the leadership's support for war funding?
The progressive caucus paper and forum opposed war funding; I have posted opposing it, signed petitions and marched on that issue.
Have you ever supported an insurgent primary candidate or someone who is challenging
an incumbent on the issues? Explain.
Yes. I was one of those running the campaign of Bob Scheer against pro war (Viet Nam war) Democratic Congressman Jeffrey Cohelan in 1965-66. Then, when the Scheer campaign narrowly failed, I supported both John George and Ron Dellums (successfully) against Cohelan. I have supported many challenges to incumbents around the country since then, including the challenge to Jane Harmon in 06. I wrote the resolution asking the Party to censure Feinstein.
What qualifies you, in terms of your organizing work, to represent progressive values on the E-Board? or
Why should progressives on the CDP E-Board vote for you as a DNC delegate?.
Because of my almost 50 yr. history of working for progressive change, both personally and professionally (in my civil rights and civil liberties practice). Viz:
? Active in CDC in the 1960’s when it was the center of progressivism in the CDP.
? Attorney for, and member of CORE (and an attorney for the NAACP, and the Ad Hoc Committee to end Segregation) when we desegregated employment in department stores, markets, banks, hotels, auto showrooms, restaurants, etc. in Northern California.
? Chief counsel for the Free Speech Movement at UCB.
? Active opponent of the War in Viet Nam, including planning anti war marches.
? Ran (with several others) an anti war candidate (Bob Scheer) against an incumbent pro war Democratic Congressman (Jeffrey Cohelan); supported Ron Dellums in his successful campaign against the same Democratic incumbent.
? Active opponent of the War on and occupation of Iraq.
? Participated in the running of campaigns of, and supported numerous progressive candidates for local office, Assembly and Senate.
? Strong supporter of Barbara Lee and treasurer of her leadership PAC (One Voice).
? I was an early and strong supporter of Howard Dean, and went to Iowa for that campaign.
? One of seven founders of the Progressive Caucus of the CDP.
? Significant role in getting the 2006 platform (carried over to the 2008 platform) to adopt public financing of elections and single payer planks.
? ?Author of the resolution to censure Feinstein.
Do you think we should have super delegates? Why or why not?
Not so that they can override the will of the majority of the party’s voters. It is, not to put too fine a point on it, undemocratic.
Are you running on a slate with other candidates? If so, who are the other candidates running on your slate and what was the process for choosing these candidates to run with you?
I am running with Mayme Hubert, Ralph Miller, Karen Bernal and Norman Solomon. We talked among ourselves and decided to run as a slate because we agree on issues and the role of the DNC. There was no process by which we were selected.
What experience has prepared you to run as a DNC member?
My lifetime as a people’s lawyer and my many years of experience in grassroots and progressive politics, some of the specifics of which are listed above, constitute the experience I can call upon as a candidate for, and a member of the DNC.
On which committee(s) would you like to serve and what are your personal
goals for each committee?
I want to serve on the Rules and Bylaws committee. My goals will be to rationalize the nominating process to eliminate the Florida and Michigan problem in 2012, and to do away with the situation in which super delegates can defeat the majority of voters of the party.
